


A Modest Proposal

by possibleregrets



Category: Villainous (Cartoon)
Genre: A lot of pain, Buckle up, Death, F/F, Fluff, Friendship, I HAD TO MAKE SOME MORE SHIT UP, Love, Murder, SO BECAUSE OF THE LATEST EPISODE, Tacos, Takes place a fair amount of time after we've seen them, Theyve grown quite a lot :'), Tw for a decent amount of gore, Yikes, but I do, but if i am, enjoy, extreme murder: protective edition, good shit, i hope im not the first fic, just show up with taco bell what a great plan, one cat, probably, probably no smut, slowburn, some blood, they dont know, theyr lesbians harold, tw blood, tw some gore, w hoop
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2019-05-06
Packaged: 2019-05-25 07:11:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14971796
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/possibleregrets/pseuds/possibleregrets
Summary: A deal to be made, fates to be had, tacos to be eaten and secrets to be unraveled-What more could you want?((Just a pairing on two characters that have nothing at all in canon so anyways here I am.))





	1. Miseros Morsu

**Author's Note:**

> Greetings! Please enjoy that which will never come to pass or be spoken about. A little self-indulgent, but I hope yall enjoy! Comments and critiques are always appreciated!!!!

  


Ah, yes, there was no better feeling than looking out upon a huge city in the dead of night, watching the lights and the people who loved to roam in the darkness. 

She could easily relate to those people; she was one of them. 

  


Hiding in the shadows, reveling in the dark wasteland that the city became once the sun had pulled its shining light off of them-

This was the life. This was the only life she chose to remember, and the only one she planned on living. 

  


**“We gonna do this or what?”** the voice was soft, yet persistent. Hungry. Much quieter than it normally was. 

  


Venom Bite nodded in response, the large mouth making up her abdomen letting out a satisfied hum at her answer. The villain blinked, eyes settling on a mostly abandoned warehouse not too far to the east. Stepping off the roof of the building, she fell in its shadow, not even the billowing of her dress making a sound. 

  


An outfit dramatic enough to make an entrance, yet practical for all occasions. Lesson number Sixteen. 

  


A bed of vines rose up to meet her, taking away any possibility of breaking anything. Thorns that normally would have shredded anyone else caught her gently, holding on for only a fraction of a second before unfolding into a small set of stairs. Good presentation and efficiency, but that could be focused on later. 

  


She was kind of in a rush. 

  


Picking up the pace after jumping past the last few steps, she was not surprised to find this area rather devoid of people. She had just had a rather destructive fight against a hero earlier that day. Some idiot named StoneHand who had really needed a lesson in manners. 

  


The destruction had effectively led to a rather shaken up city- which made it all the more easier for her to notice when there was someone who didn't belong. Specifically, an intruder in one of her “safe houses”.

A frown pulled at the corner of her lips. Suspicious indeed. Suspicious and reckless on their part.

  


Slowing down as she neared the building, she circled it from a distance, trying to gage a point of entry from the intruder, and-

  


She paused. Whoever this was, had honestly tried the front warehouse doors. 

  


They were either very brave, or very stupid. Extremely stupid. 

  


Of course, this was not Venom Bite’s secret lair or anything. She herself was not dumb enough to have it in a place... so exposed and predictable. Lesson number seventy-six. This was just one trap of many for the heroes that tried to disrupt things in her city. 

  


They never learned. Attempting to pass through, and never quite making it out in one piece- if at all. Those were good days. 

  


However, heroes were also stupid enough to make some big statement or flashy entrance. Especially if they were some new or wannabe hero. This was… not that. The only reason she even knew someone was out here to begin with, was the fact that a few of her plants had closed due to an outside trigger.

  


They had to be incredibly stupid to try and mess with her maneaters. As she scaled the back wall to slip through a window, she paused in hesitation and realization. This probably wasn't a hero. It was far too quiet for one of them. A light hiss escaped from her second maw to urge her to hurry up, agitation seeping into her own emotions. Venom Bite exhaled slowly, clearing her mind a bit before continuing up. Trespassers were trespassers, after all.

  


The latch to the window opened easily to her, the villain landing lightly on the catwalk and moving forward in silence to survey the area. 

  


There were only a few lights on in the warehouse; the medium sun lamp for her plants, a few lights above the catwalk, the buttons on various decoy machines, the lamp on a desk where someone was currently hunched over and writing somethi-

  


Her lips pressed together in a thin line, eyes narrowing. The person below her looked up at the large plant that was in front of them, reaching into their pocket and tossing something at one of its many maws. 

The plant snapped it up quickly, grinning and bobbing its head. Was that…? 

  


The person reached into their jacket pocket yet again. There was a loud crunch that followed the sound of something unwrapping. 

  


The mouth that made up Venom Bites abdomen opened slightly, letting out a slow hiss. 

  


However, the person currently feeding  _ tacos _ to her plants didn't seem to notice the subtle warning at all. 

  


Venom bite cleared her throat, crossing her arms and letting her heels clicking loudly against the metal as she stepped into the light. 

  


The intruder turned quickly, yelping in surprise and nearly falling out of her chair. 

  


_ “Who are you, and What are you doing here.” _ She spoke evenly, not a question but an order, and not in the mood to play games. 

  


As the person below scrabbled to regain balance, Venom Bite became acutely aware of something she had missed in her initial survey.  Bows and Arrows weren't something commonly used, but could be deadly in the right hands. The quiver and end of the bow peeked out from beside the desk, placed with care but seemingly out of reach. She knew better than to drop her guard, however. That was the sort of mistake that could get you killed. Lesson number twenty-four. 

  


Venom Bite knew that should this intruder try to attack, she was kind of at a disadvantage if she left things as they were. Walking to divert the intruder's attention to one side while her vines snuck under the desk to retrieve the weapon, she studied the other carefully. 

  


They had moved to stand, one hand against the desk and appearing a bit… nervous?

  


She slid off the hood of her jacket, revealing a young woman with three bright maroon eyes that seemed to dart everywhere except up at Venom Bite. She fidgeted with the strings of her hoodie for a moment before realizing Venom Bite had asked her why she was here. “Th’o, um, I know that thith lookth  _ really  _ bad, but I did want to talk to you, but I got hungry th'o I picked up thome taco’th and your planth looked th'uper hungry th’o… um…” she trailed off, shifting from foot to foot and rubbing at her neck. 

  


Well, there's no way this was a hero; Venom Bite didn't have any fans or anything, and it wouldn't make sense for one to just show up and start feeding tacos to her plants anyways, so who-

  


The intruders head snapped up after a moment, as if remembering she actually had some self-confidence. “Oh! Thorry- I'm Illuminarrow. I'm from Libro’th.” She offered a shaky smile to the villain above her.

  


Venom Fang’s eyebrow twitched. “Illuminarrow from Libros?” She repeated. knew the name. A villain that deals in information and minor arcane magic with probably a little too much time on their hands. Known for hoarding some of the books from the(now burned) Library of Alexander, and pulling off some huge hits in her career- on heroes and villains alike. Her color scheme and theme suddenly made a lot more sense.

  


The question briefly crossed her mind if the other woman was here to kill her. Vines tightened around the bow and quiver case and the fangs making up her upper body clenched in a mixture of fear and anger, those emotions starting to seep into her own mind. However, she began rationalizing, current evidence showed that this was not the case. Illuminarrow wasn't stupid enough to try and kill someone by waltzing up and demanding their attention. Besides, the archer most certainly would have wanted to get rid of her plants if the intent was to kill. Not… feed them tacos.

  


She thought back to the villain's first words, face expressionless. A talk…  _ “You have thirty seconds before you're killed for trespassing.” _ Venom Bite spoke evenly. 

  


Illumimarrow’s eyes blinked in surprise. “O-oh! Okay, well, I didn't think I'd get thith far th'o I didn't make a conden’thed ver’thion um-”

  


_ “Twenty-five.” _ The other villain cut her off, unfolding her arms and placing her hands on the railing. 

  


Illuminarrow got a bit flustered at that, leg bouncing up and down nervously. “Y-you know, if you could give me a thecond that'd ju’th-”

  


_ “Twenty.” _ Venom Bite’s patience was waning. Did no one take other people's time into consideration?

  


“Hey! You're not counting full thecond’th and-” Illuminarrow started, only to get cut off by the other villain again. 

  


“ _ Ten _ .” 

  


There was a frustrated groan from the archer, clenching her hands as she tried to gather her thoughts. 

  


“ _ Five _ .” Thick vines began slinking across the floor, writhing in the shadows and rising to prepare to strike at the intruder. Venom Bite almost felt bad.

  


Almost. 

  


“ _ Four _ .” The many mouthed plants closest to Illuminarrow raised their heads, grinning. While tacos were nice, there was a reason they were called the man-eaters.

  


“ _ Three _ -” 

  


“I want to make a deal!” Illuminarrow finally managed, desperation heavy in her voice.

  


Everything stopped. 

  


Some of the plants tilted their heads, turning to face Venom Bite. A deal? 

  


That was… unexpected. She stared at the other, who had squeezed all of her eyes shut and stiffened up as if preparing for the worst. Villains didn't really ask each other for deals. And the archer seemed to know exactly what she was asking of the other villain. 

  


There was silence for what Venom Bite figured was a few seconds too many, clearing her throat and crossing her arms once again.  _ “What do you want?” _

  


The sigh of relief that Illuminarrow let out was almost comical as she flopped back into the chair again.

  


Time to fix that air of safety. _ “I did not say you were going to live _ .” 

  


The woman froze, glancing up at the other villain slowly, fear having returned to her eyes. “R-right. I wath thort of hoping you'd let me hang out around here for a bit. Alive, pleath.” She explained after a moment.

  


Venom Bite was reminded of a kicked puppy that just wanted to sleep on the couch.

  


And maybe eat a taco.

  


_ “Why here? I’m sure you have contacts that you can use _ ,” she replied coldly. This was not some charity city, after all. She took quite a few steps to keep it from appearing like that.

  


“Th’ee, thath the thing. Thothe heroth are gonna look there firth. I cover my trackth, but they are… really digging deep here.” Illuminarrow explained with a nervous laugh, though it was strained quite a bit. “I’m not lookin to make a th’ene, I th’wear! I juth need a mo’thly thafe plath to hide for a bit.”

  


Venom Bite’s eyes narrowed, tapping her nails against the railing gently. “ _ You're a villain. Surely you can take care of your own problems.” _ She wasn't going to just supply someone she didn't know with protection. 

  


Illuminarrow could tell she was losing, leg bouncing up and down nervously. “I can offer information. Whatever you want, I can tell you! I-I can give you the informathion on hundred’th of heroth!”

  


The villain above her didn't seem entirely impressed at her offer, and watched Illuminarrow squirm in silence.

  


After a while, Venom Bite spoke. “ _ What did you do to become so desperate _ ?”

  


Oh the archer did not like that wording- but Venom Bite was right; she was getting pretty desperate. “I, um… I thort of … thole thome informathion from the hero’th allianth, and now they kind of want me… mothly dead.” She explained.

  


_ “Mostly dead?” _ She repeated, raising an eyebrow. That was a new one.

  


Illuminarrow laughed nervously, rubbing at her neck.”Y-yeah. A few otherth want to try and capture me for what I know. But, uh, my mouth and mind are like a theel bear-”

  


The mouth that made up Venom Bite’s abdomen snapped shut, Illuminarrow trailing off at the gentle reminder of who she was dealing with. “They're, um… very th’ecure.”

  


Venom Bite stood silently for a few more minutes, Illuminarrows leg bouncing up and down faster the longer the silence continued. Why did she have to pick one of the more emotionless villains to ask for protection? She was completely at Venom Bite’s mercy, and that was not something she was known for having. 

  


She watched her for a moment longer before letting the vines form a flight of stairs for her to step down and face the other. Illuminarrow rose to meet her, one hand braced nervously against the chair.

  


Venom Bite was fairly taller than she was, Illuminarrow noticed a touch too late. It wasn't just the heels, either. “ **_If_ ** _ I decide to allow you to stay, you cannot fight anyone or anything that comes to my city. Understood?” _ Illuminarrow was frozen for a moment, trying to process while under the intense gaze of the other villain. Eventually, remembering that she wasn't a statue, she gave a short nod.

  


“Y-you won't even know I'm here.” The archer had tried to keep her voice steady, but she was still trying to get over how much more intimidating Venom Bite was face to face. 

  


There was the slightest tilt of her head as the other responded. “ _ You would not be staying here- this place is meant to draw heroes in. There's a motel that you can stay at until you leave.”  _

  


Illuminarrow wasn't the only one who seemed a little disappointed, the man-eaters having understood that they wouldn't be able to eat, nor get more snacks from the new person. 

  


A sad day.

  


Venom Bite proceeded to blatantly ignore the silent snapping of her plant's mouths. They'd get food later. 

  


“...Th’o, ith that a yeth?” Illuminarrow asked after a moment, shifting slightly.

  


The other nodded once, before taking a step back.  _ “For now, yes.” _

  


Letting out a sigh of relief, Illuminarrow rubbed at her neck, trying to remember how to breathe normally. Venom Bite walked to the desk, taking a blank sheet of paper and writing down an address, and room number. 

  


She almost hesitated for a moment before handing over the paper, Venom Bite had taken note of the other papers on the desk as well, mildly impressed at the amount of information Illuminarrow was able to glean from so little time with her plants, yet the underlying threat remained. 

  


Illuminarrow glanced over the address given and nodded. “I’ll.. um… I'll head over there now, if I can have my bow and arrowth back?” She asked, not even glancing to where the requested items had been left.

  


She blinked once in surprise. So she was aware. Apparently the entire time as well. Her vines pulled out Illuminarrow’s weapon of choice and set them in Venom Bite’s waiting hand, the villain looking it over before giving it back. 

  


Illuminarrow reached for it slowly, knowing very well the amount of trust they had to place in each other now. They both had direct access to kill the other and that was more dangerous than any hero.

  


She gathered up her trash and a small bag, leaving the notes she had written as Venom Bite studied her every move.

  


Said villain also became aware that she was being watched as well, the items she had originally taken for accents to her outfit showing themselves to be a bit more than Venom Bite had first thought. As the intruder-now-tenant turned her back on her, one of the triangles watched her from its place in her hair, it's single eye blinking once. 

  


As the other moved quickly to leave the building, Venom Bite stood silently. When the door did shut behind Illuminarrow, she walked towards her plants and looked them over.

  


While they quite enjoyed the attention, not all of Venom Bite’s Focus was there.

  


The villain was currently deep in thought over who had placed the bigger gamble here- and Illuminarrow, as she made her way down the darkened streets, was wondering the same exact thing. 

  
  
  


End chapter one.

  



	2. Sagitta

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Illuminarrow takes stock of what the heck she just did.  
> And Realizes she may not have been right at all.
> 
> tw, death, some blood
> 
> Note: So I know this took a very long time!!!! In light of the recent villainous episode, and my determination to keep to my premade plot, Venom Bite will stay Venom Bite, though theres a lot on how she came to be, so STAY TUNED  
> Thank y'all so much for waiting!!! Please leave a comment!!!

**Arrow**

 

That had been…

 

 _Risky_ , to say the least.

 

She'd never really met Venom Bite before, just seen her here and there on reports and at a few villain conventions.

 

But, never got close enough to talk to her.

 

There were several villains that people knew to keep away from- And though she may not have as much power as Black Hat or the other great known evils, No one tried to talk to her.

 

They actively tried to avoid her.

 

Venom Bite didn't seem to mind, keeping to herself and moving through crowds in silence.

 

Other villains knew she had a power of her own and was not afraid to use it. Illuminarrow thought back to the villain convention in seaport about two years ago. About how that newbie villain, Stormwave or something, had started boasting about himself and challenging other villains. He did have quite a bit of force to him, but when he picked Venom Bite out of the crowd and grabbed at her- she moved so fast, Illuminarrow wouldn't have been able to see it without her eyes all over the place.

 

As it was, what happened was a bit hard to follow. He reached out to grab at her dress, then he was on the floor with most of his arm ripped off, and then there was just a vine-covered mass with a steadily growing puddle of blood seeping out of it.

 

And, blood dripping from her secondary mouth, she brushed off the skirt of her dress and walked away.

 

From her place amidst the ring of shocked villains around the body, there was a hard shove as Venom Bite walked through, the villains rushing to leave a clear and wide path for her. Even several meters away, Illuminarrow could softly hear a growl of warning coming from that secondary mouth.

 

The juxtaposition of her emotionless face was astounding.

 

What was even more interesting, was the connection the villain had to her plants. They seemed to follow her emotions, yet, also had a mind of their own from what she had seen of the Man-eaters in the warehouse.

 

Following her, acting on her behalf, _killing_ for her-

 

Illuminarrow slowed down a touch, becoming hyper-aware of the dark green and purple thorned vines that had woven themselves into everywhere they could take root. Hidden among the plain roses and even various unassuming plants from lavender to azaleas, what she hadn't been looking for was suddenly glaring.

 

The archer let out a small hum, Picking up her pace once again and hurrying to the location written on the paper. She didn't want to be out longer than necessary.

 

As soon as she had left the warehouse, Illuminarrow had changed out of her more identifying clothing and carefully packed it away in favor of plain jeans and a long sleeved shirt. She had surveyed the city briefly when coming in, but hadn't needed to spend too much time in the open. Besides that, she wasn't an idiot and knew better than to check into a place in full gear if the point was to stay _hidden._

 

The sign for the Thorn Bed Motel glowed with hazy neon in the night, a few rose bushes planted out in front of the main building. Illuminarrow walked up to the motel office, stepping in nervously. It was fairly well kept, and turning to face the check-in counter, she froze when she saw a houseplant version of the Man-eaters she had met earlier. There was only one, and yet even without eyes, it seemed to be watching her intently. Waiting.

 

There wasn't anyone else at or behind the counter, and as she stared, the plant seemed to get a little impatient and snapped its jaws fairly loudly.  

 

Illuminarrow blinked once, walking over to the tiny potted plant. Of course, that's what you do when something snaps its jaws at you. Get closer.

 

Luckily, it seemed pleased as she moved nearer, grinning and bobbing its head. A shiny nameplate caught her attention, the name Aubrey etched into it. She muttered the name softly, the plant opening its mouth in confirmation, letting out what she swore was a chuckle. The soil in the pot churned and a small vine emerged- holding onto a pair of room keys and offering it to the archer.

 

She took the keys from the plant, nodding a thank you to which it responded with a content fluttering of its leaves. Illuminarrow wondered briefly if that was this one's only job. She almost reached out a hand to pat it gently on the head, before realizing that those shiny teeth the plant had probably weren't just for show.

 

As it was, Aubrey seemed to grin wider and almost dare her to pat it.

 

She knew she'd leave with at least one less finger.

 

Illuminarrow backed out, closing the door behind herself and sighing.

 

Things would get better. She walked a short while to the room she’d be staying in, no longer blind to the vines that had woven their way into the ground and crawled up the walls as mock decor. Potted plants sat outside each door, Illuminarrow not noticing any of the mawed plants hidden within until she stopped at her own.

 

It peaked its head out at her, clicked once, and then proceeded to go back to hiding in the flowers. Warily, she opened the door and stepped in, pleasantly surprised to find a spacious room and small kitchenette inside.

 

She closed the door and dropped her bag onto the floor, immediately flopping face down on the bed. Sinking into it, she let out a content sigh, settling her nerves for the first time in a while. A moment's peace was rather rare in the business of evil.

 

She just stretched out on the bed for a moment in silence, eventually hopping up and going to grab her bag. A chorus of hums greeted her as she opened the bag and pulled out a nest of what she fondly called “her other eyes”. Of course, they were much more than that. Doing a quick triangle count, she picked up a few of them and set them at various points of the room.

 

“Alright… Milo, you’ve got the door, Theo, you’re on Kitchen duty… Thad has the Balcony and-” She stopped in her review of the area as Thad chirped in warning as a dark mass gripped on the edge of the balcony. Illuminarrow narrowed her eyes before stepping to the door and opening it, grabbing her bow and an arrow on the way out.

 

Drawing back and stepping forward quietly, she held her breath. She barely made it out to be a vine before it disappeared off of the edge. Freezing in place, her grip tightened on the bow as the vine returned, carrying with it a clothed covered bundle. Dropping the package over the railing, it snaked off the edge again and disappeared. Illuminarrow ran to the railing and looked over, glancing around and surveying the area for movement. She blinked once, eyes resting on a figure perched on a roof in the distance.

It seemed to study her in return before jumping off, the silhouette of her dress flaring out as she fell. The archer did not see her land, but from this, she knew Venom Bite would at least be keeping an eye on her. Turning her attention to the bundle, she picked it up and sighed before adjusting her grip on the surprisingly heavy parcel. She looked over at Thad who seemed rather concerned about the whole event, even if only using his one eye to emote. Flashing a very unconvincing smile, she headed inside, leaving Thad to keep an eye out for anything else.

 

Sighing softly as she closed the balcony door, it was hard not to be unnerved. Why had she thought this was a good idea? Yes, just pick a villain that you haven't fucked over and has a fair amount of power that's also not black hat. Of course, though, she had to pick one of the few villains she knew very little about. It wasn't like VenomBite made it a point to broadcast her life's story. Even her fights weren't really broadcasted on the news- then again, they weren't really fights to begin with.

 

Illuminarrow groaned softly, setting her bow and the arrow down before flopping unceremoniously on the bed with the package against her chest. Staring at the ceiling, another sigh of frustration escaped her. She had played herself like a fool.

 

Turning her head towards the triangle on the nightstand, she frowned. “Any ideath, Jamie?” False hope laced her voice, though even that quickly died at the malcontent hum in response. She huffed softly, sitting up and turning over the parcel. Best see what this was all about, then.

 

Unwrapping what she soon found out to be a couple of shirts making up the cloth cover, she was further surprised at the actual contents.  There were a startling amount of takeout menus, a wad of cash, a map of the building for escape routes, a map of the city with various things circled and crossed out, another shirt, and a sealed lavender envelope. Oh, and then a really expensive looking leather journal. Pausing after she laid everything out, there more than just a little bit of confusion.

 

Frowning, she went for the envelope first, unsealing and pulling out the letter inside. Dark purple ink in neat handwriting leaning towards cursive greeted her, and it only took a moment for her to read it over.

 

And then pause and read it over again to make sure she read it correctly.

 

Illuminarrow,

 

These items are now yours for your own protection. I would advise against leaving the motel for a while. However, if you find yourself needing to get out, the map will have areas marked.

 

Food is a necessity. Takeout menus have been marked as well, though the kitchenette is fully stocked.

 

If you need anything, there are stationary and envelopes on the desk. Give Petri your letter and he will get it to me. Please do not feed him any tacos.

 

In the event of heroes coming in, stay here. Do not attack under any circumstances.

 

Worst case scenario, evacuate the place circled in purple on the map.

 

-VB

 

The archer let out an audible hum, picking up the map again to get a better look at how the map was marked. Neatly crossed out or otherwise circled and labeled, were various places ranging from coffee shops to parks, as well as directions in the margins.

 

Towards the edge of town, there was a small building circled in purple- unlabeled and unnamed. Not near anything else, and barely in the city limits.  

 

After committing the map to memory with one last look, she stood and cracked her knuckles in determination. Time for the important stuff. She slid off the bed and headed straight for the kitchenette, opening the small refrigerator and grinning. This was a dangerous amount of soda.  There were also a few bottles of water, but those weren't as important. The cabinet was a bit more exciting, holding a plethora of cookies, chips, soups, crackers, as well as canned vegetables and fruit.

 

Something inside of her cried in joy. _Actual food._ It was probably her stomach honestly. Illuminarrow would like to say she knew the last time she had eaten something other than takeout or fast food. But, that would take some serious thinking and right now, that cup ramen was looking _really good_. Three minutes and some hot water later, she stood with her Styrofoam cup of cheap ramen.

 

As she dug into the food, her thoughts shifted back to the letter shed been given. Petri, huh? Didn’t take a genius to figure out that VenomBite was probably referencing one of the plants. There were no doubt a fair number of them around, the city probably laced with the things. She did kinda feel bad though; the Man Eaters at the warehouse seemed to love the tacos. Maybe this one would too, wherever it may be..Mind going back to the nameplate at Aubrey’s desk, she unlocked the door and turned the large pot that sat outside her door carefully. She let out a triumphant bark of laughter as she confirmed her thoughts. On a small metal plate, no bigger than her pinky, the name Petri was etched into the plaque.

 

She peered once more into the assortment of flowers, just barely making out the head of the plant in question. I seemed to be a lot darker than the vibrant green she had seen with the other, but maybe there was something to be said for camouflage. Picking out a few noodles from her cup ramen, she dangled it just above the pot, trying to watch for any movement. “Hey lil guy… You hungry at all?”

 

Without warning, Petri shot up and snapped the noodles up in one bite, licking its lips before sinking back down.

 

Illuminarrow was painfully aware of how close those teeth had been to her fingers as she pulled her hand back. Too close. From the reaction though, she did have to wonder if Venom Bite was even feeding them. It's not like tacos were _bad._ She thought back to the letter. Well, noodles weren't tacos so she was fine there too- that was even if Venom Bite found out.

 

She glanced over at the plant, frowning. “I'll keep my mouth th’ut about thith if you do thame with yourth, Petri.” She spoke quietly, without any real reason to except for the faint paranoia that Venom Bite might be listening. She decided she didn't like that sensation- practically being able to feel the others disappointment was not something she enjoyed.

She moved back inside, closing the door and locking it with a sigh. The thought couldn't help but cross her mind that perhaps she had made the wrong decision here. That maybe, just _maybe,_ she had played the wrong card here. Poking at the noodles before shoving a forkful in her mouth, she couldn't help but frown at the situation.  

 

Her plan _could_ severely backfire, and it wouldn't take much to make that happen. With heros out in full force already, she could almost hear the crows of the heroes and the crackling in the air as they appeared to assault the city…

 

_Wait a minute._

 

Setting down the cup of noodles, she spoke quietly, knowing she'd be heard. “Report.”

 

Immediately, a chorus of hums rang out, all in tune- no.

 

Very faintly, she could hear a rather sour note, and it only took a moment for her to realize where it was coming from. Closing her third eye, she was able to see through any of the other ‘eyes’ she had placed- however, right now, she was focused on the one she had left in the warehouse.

 

Though it was pretty dim at first, that didn’t last long as one of the walls was broken through, debris flying past the eye. A tall figure rose, blue energy crackling across their body and lightly burning remains of the wall as they shrugged off the destruction.

 

“Venom Bite! Where are you?!” They snarled, looking around in what appeared to be desperation. With more light, it was easier for the identity for the hero to be seen; the black and blue spandex suit they wore displaying the Lightning Dust Emblem brought a frown to Illuminarrows face. What was **_He_ ** doing so far from his city?

 

There was a very small yellow glint in the shadows, one that the archer almost didn't pick up on.

 

“Release your hold on this city and its people! Your Tyranny will come to an end tonight! I, In the name of-”

 

The Hero was suddenly cut off as a thorned vine shot out from the shadows and went through his neck, a bloody grugle the only sound for a moment before he dropped to the ground.

 

Heels clicked across the concrete as Venom Bite made her way to the hero and kneeled beside him. The Vine from his throat withdrew reluctantly, the sound not very pleasant at all. The Villain gave a nod of what looked like satisfaction before standing and picking up the dead hero by the cape. Carrying, not even dragging it over to her plants, the maneaters grinned wildy. As soon as the body hit the floor in front of them, the maws lunged forward and began to tear into the carcass.

The last thing she saw was the approving smile of Venom Bite towards her Man Eaters before Illuminarrow disconnected from her eye. Exhaling a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding, she tapped her finger against the counter nervously.

 

_That ruthlessness._

 

With that display, it suddenly became apparent of how quickly the other villain could have killed her. She doubted she'd be able to defend anything like that.

 

Illuminarrow thought back to the card of information that she thought would give her some advantage with dealing with Venom Bite.

 

That card didn’t even seem to play any relevance now.

 

 _Venom Bite was no longer_ **_anything_ ** _like Mawisite._

 

This was worse than she had planned for.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> chapter three is in the works, promise; love y'all!


	3. Novus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> We go back to Venom Bite and look over her lifestyle.
> 
>  
> 
> here we are. anyways, let me know what yall think.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> \---
> 
> also, I'm back. I was not expecting this chapter ALONE to be just under 4 k or for life to happen.   
> whoops.
> 
> and I know it ends awkwardly. But its already rather long, and w ell

  
  


_ Mawisite _ .

 

That name was so  _ familiar _ and felt so  _ wrong _ . 

 

Lesson number eight, learn from the past but do not sulk in it. She could not say that she could clearly remember the day she began the fight with her parasite, even after years of mild dormancy. Raised by a villain, she left when he could not solve the problem. 

 

He solved so many problems with his work, why could he just fix-

 

It was not in their job description. 

 

She set down a bag of cement, her plants already working to seal the hole the hero had “ _installed_ ”. How lovely.

 

They knew what to do, knowing that if they did not help, the coming cold would hurt them. They were smart, and very partial to surviving no matter what orders were given. The Maw that made up her abdomen let out a soft growl, faintly clicking its fangs. 

 

The villain let out a tired sigh, watching as a vine snaked forward to grab the bag she had set down. Leaving with a small wave to her plants, she stepped into the shadows of the building and began the walk home. 

 

As soon as she reached the small building resting at the edge of the city, her shoulders sagged a bit, exhaustion seeping in. Stepping in a careful pattern through a webbing of vines and thorns to avoid both waking her plants and setting off miscellaneous traps was as easy as breathing for her even in this state. She didn't need to see where she was going, having walked these halls so many times. Blinking slowly, she found herself in the kitchen, unsurprised at this development. She closed her eyes, ready to sleep, but also unsurprised to open her eyes again to quarter of a raw pig carcass. Mindlessly stripping the chosen meat from the bone and offering it to her parasite was just part of their routine. Her mind was trying to go through other things right now. She made a mental note to get more ice cream; that was their favorite for the morning after a long day, and they were nearly out. 

 

Sometimes, on easier days, she would review the day's happenings out loud, or look over the latest test results whale the maw ate- though with how tired she was, she could barely keep her eyes open. 

 

She did not remember finishing her dinner, nor stripping from her clothes and climbing straight into her bed. Exhaustion pulling her into a dreamless sleep, one of the last and vague coherent thoughts she had was that this whole mess of today would likely get worse. 

 

She was not wrong.

 

Morning did not arrive with the gentle tweets of innocent birds, or the warm rays of a rising sun, but a thunderclap that shook the earth and was barely a warning for the storm to follow. 

 

It was, even if just _barely_ , enough to wake Venom Bite from her sleep, eyes opening tiredly. She had not received nearly enough rest- though she couldn't remember the last time she had felt at 100%.

 

Now that she was properly assessing the ache in her muscles, she couldn't remember being above an 80%. Sitting up and swinging her legs off the side of the bed, there was a moment of calm as she ran through the list of things to do. These were rare as well, the parasite usually waking her up first and demanding breakfast. 

 

But, averaging a lovely total of two hours of sleep(if you rounded up), wasn't exactly great for the parasite either. After some mild figurative and literal internal debate, the villain stood, stretching out and brushing some hair out of her face before heading to the kitchen. 

The lights flickered on, the coffee pot beginning to start with the flip of a switch, and several small maneaters watched her expectantly from their spots in the planter by the window sill. 

 

Going straight for the freezer and pulling out the last of the ice cream, she grabbed several chunks of meat from the refrigerator as well and flung them towards the window. There was the snap of jaws and faint trills from the plants in thanks for their breakfast. Even with as tired as she was, it still brought the corner of her mouth up in a small smile. 

 

Washing her hands before grabbing a spoon and sitting back in a chair, she sighed, poking at the small cup of ice cream and taking a bite. Melting almost immediately in her mouth, it was always nice to feel the cool treat going down her throat. Her body temperature normally ran much higher than the average humans while the parasite slept, typically evening out once the parasite was awake and active. She could remember the tests run on her while she was a kid, always too warm for it to be normal and wanting to soak in the cold pool.

 

_**“Your body has too much energy that isn't being used while the parasite lies dormant; Be careful about that.”** _

 

Her Father’s voice echoed in her head, dull and as unpolished as the memory itself. Venom Bite turned to look down the hall, sighing softly as she stared at the lab door. While she ate, the internal debate of going to shower or start work raged on. She did not want to wake up the parasite just yet, but also didn't want to start in the lab and be interrupted by a yawn from the parasite. She was also a bit more exhausted than usual, which was not helping her to make a clear decision. Two hero attacks yesterday and one… guest of sorts. Admittedly, the maneaters quickly dispatched the second hero, but knowing all of the resources she would have to restock to make sure everything was backed up- and then Illuminarrow…  

 

The choice had been made to let her stay for a while, but Venom Bite was not one hundred percent sure as to how she would handle the threat the archer brought with her. 

 

The heroes alliance had attempted to set foot in the city before, attempted to kill the villain with such a constricting hold on the citizens. 

 

Those heroes no longer existed, disappearing before they even made it into the city limits. No bodies were ever found, and never would be. That was the beauty of her power, able to destroy and remove most threats without a trace. Lesson Four, maintain a high standard and be efficient and clean. 

 

The tip of the spoon hit the bottom of the ice cream cup lightly, pulling Venom Bite out of her stupor. She still hadn't made a decision. 

 

**“Thinking too loud again…”** The maw in her abdomen growled out with a yawn. Using the long tongue it possessed, the maw reached up and snatched the ice cream cup out of Venom Bite’s hands. **“We need ice cream.”** It spoke after a moment, the disappointment evident as it tossed the cup away. 

 

Venom Bite sighed at the Parasite’s actions, nodding in agreement as she rubbed at her forehead. _“It’s on the list. Promise.“_

 

It clicked its teeth together in thought. **“...Tacos.”**

 

She froze, eyes narrowing. _“No. Absolutely not.”_

 

**“Tacos.”** It insisted, snapping its teeth together hard.

 

_“Shower first. Then the store.”_ They could get tacos later. 

 

**“Liar.”** The Maw hissed out, their irritation seeping into Venom Bite as it intruded on her thoughts. 

 

The Villain refused to reply as she stood and tossed her spoon into the sink before heading back to her room. **“I want Tacos.”** The Maw insisted, clicking its teeth together in anger. 

 

_“You only want tacos because you smelled them yesterday.”_ She countered, stepping into the bathroom and turning on the shower. Yesterday had only been three hours ago, really.

 

**“Gingersnap has Tacos.”** It insisted, bringing Venom Bite to a stop. They didn’t recognize the name, but out of everyone they had interacted with that wasn’t dead yet…  

 

_“You mean the archer?”_ She finally asked, sighing heavily as the maw snapped in confirmation. She was not going to continue this conversation.

 

Stepping into the warm water was a welcome break. The Parasite didn’t like drinking water unless it was ice, and wasn't fond of the shower in general. _“There are some things that we have to get done today, besides going to the store. The extractions from the hero last night should be in the lab, and I want to get to them as soon as possible. If what Illuminarrow said is true, we need to make sure we have as many defenses as we can. I also want to make sure that the latest crop is growing well.”_

 

She scrubbed tiredly at her scalp, gently working around the small horns and washing away the stress from yesterday. Running the washcloth across her arms and then down her sides, VenomBite took care as to gently clean the bony appendages. She had long since become used to the various extremities that the Parasite had caused long ago, Her father explaining the ones on her back as _**“Ribs that got in the way during development.”**_  It was the most probable hypothesis anyways. With the X-rays always showing several missing, it made sense considering the placement of the parasite. Unlike normal bone, however, she could control what little movement they had in order to fold them flat or use them otherwise. It certainly made getting dressed much easier. The horns, neither of them were sure of. Perhaps she would never get the answer to that.

 

Her shower felt, as it always did, much too short as she finished up and stepped out and onto the soft bathroom rug. Tousling her hair with a towel before letting it rest on her shoulders, VenomBite moved to the sink and began to brush her teeth. Two minutes later, and with a much larger brush, the maw got its teeth brushed as well, albeit the process taking much longer. With its teeth properly cleaned, it wasn't hard to feel contentment seeping through. She would never understand why the Parasite enjoyed being so pampered. 

 

They might like it even more than eating- and she wasn’t sure if that made it worse or better. 

 

Walking back to her room and dressing into a black unitard with corresponding openings, it wasn’t long before the Parasite spoke again.

 

**“Wear robe.”**

 

_“Not right now. We have to go to the lab.”_  Her counter was met with a grumble and a soft hiss. She felt the same way about clothing, but it would be a touch risky to be in the lab without any real protection. Even with the openings and breathability of her villain outfit, the Parasite would constantly complain about having it on for too long. 

 

Slipping on a pair of flats and grabbing a lab coat from her closet, Venom Bite moved towards the kitchen to pour herself a cup of coffee before heading to the lab. 

 

Time to get to work.

 

Making her way to the basement level stairs, she keyed in the appropriate passwords and hummed softly as the door slid open with a soft ping. The fluorescent lights flickered on as she walked inside, the low buzz of the generators powering the large greenhouse in the center the only sound in the room. 

 

The soothing scent of petrichor that permeated the lab was cut by the iron tang brought on by a large amount of blood, the scent alone so heavy that the maw couldn’t keep itself from beginning to drool. It didn’t really get to taste the hero from last night, and there were still scraps in the greenhouse and-

 

_“Not for you,”_ Venombite muttered, the maw clicking its teeth in annoyance. The Villain walked forward, the faint snapping of bone growing as she moved into the plant nursery. The smell of ozone seemed stronger than normal, she noted as she picked up a tablet and began recording her notes. 

 

There were several dozen trays in the nursery section of the greenhouse, each with about fifteen very small mawed plants that swayed gently in an unseen breeze. Each was to be fed its own blend of proteins, blood, and supplemental nutrients- and as a result, led to each tray growing a unique breed of maneater. 

 

Realistically, she thought as a small vine wrapped around her finger, most of them would not grow to be the size of her first maneaters and the couple generations following. The ones in the recently repaired warehouse were actually a part of the fourth generation, while the half dozen that remained from the beginning lurked far below the earth and made up the foundation of the entire city. She made a mental reminder to send them their monthly meal later that week. 

 

Most of the plants got rather tired after eating, focusing their energy on adapting their systems to the latest introduction of DNA and continuing to grow. 

 

There were some exceptions that Venombite pointedly ignored when she first walked in.

 

The newly developed forms of the plants that had been given scraps from Lightning Dust snipped and snapped in agitation, the physical effects already taking hold. Thin blue accents along the leaves, stems, and vines of the batch glowed softly and crackled with electricity. The last few parts of the late hero were being devoured as she watched, the larger of the group surprisingly non-aggressive towards those that were a good size smaller. Interactions with the runts of every tray we so very interesting; usually it was the runts that were able to take on two samples at once and combine them, however, the risk of being attacked by their tray-mate was unsurprisingly high.

 

Nonetheless, those were usually her favorite. 

 

The larger of the tray turned towards Venom Bite immediately, grinning and opening their mouths just enough to see a bright blue glow coming from within. They were nearly a foot tall already, and even with the runts at four inches, they were growing rather quickly as well. The rest calmed considerably as she neared, the maw itself chuckling softly. Nodding in agreement to a silent comment, the villain began to look them over carefully, already knowing that they would need time for a full adjustment. Even with some of the specimens being larger on average, the last thing she wanted to do was to bring them above ground and risk them hurting themselves.

 

Scribbling down her notes, she was both excited and apprehensive to see how this hero may or may not affect her plants' growth. She gently ran her thumb across the cheeks of several of them, smiling slightly herself as they trilled out greetings. Responding only in alto toned chirps, she knew it wouldn't be long before she needed to begin to teach them other forms of communication like their older relatives.

 

At the very least, they would need to learn to write. Few had been able to form the ability to speak a true language, and even fewer of those remained alive. Sliding the stylus down the screen, she quickly scheduled the next round of food and nutrient delivery for them, humming softly as she paused to pet several of them on her way out. As the door closed, she activated the misters inside and allowed it to cycle through as she moved to the area in her lab with a little less sentient life. 

 

Per usual, a small amount of flesh and bone from the hero had been brought back intact, carefully suspended from any sort of decay in a specialized contraption. Tapping a few buttons on the console to the machine as she sat down, the dull hum as it started up provided a soothing tone for her to begin to work.

 

There were a couple of emails to send, yes, of course. One that had to be sent and bounced off of seventy-six servers and towers, while, thankfully, the other only needed to go through thirty-two.

 

Not five minutes after they were sent, she had the go-ahead to share part of the sample, and then plans for lunch in a month from the second. The machine working in the background, she carefully scrolled through test data on one monitor and occasionally glanced through the news feeds that stupidly helped her to find out what heroes might decide they needed to try to “liberate” her city.

 

She paused for a moment, setting aside the test results and going to work on researching her latest guest. The maw, having been patiently quiet as its host worked, let out a growl. 

 

**“Gingersnap.”**

 

Even with the name alone, it wasn’t hard to sense what the maw wanted.

 

_“We aren’t getting tacos. Not right now.”_ Venom Bite sighed, turning in her chair as the machine let out a rapid beeping to indicate completion. Separated into five vials and pre-labeled, the red sludge inside was noticeably tinged with black and blue. Humming softly as she carefully packed up her part of a bargain that was struck years ago, purple pen smoothly glided across the box as it was made out to the person of interest.

 

Barely finishing his name, she stopped as a panel in the floor slid back to reveal a small section of dark soil. Not a moment later, a small maneater poked its head out, glancing around for a moment with non-existent eyes. Turning toward Venombite and unwrapping it leaves, they produced a small peach colored envelope, holding it forward to take.

 

There were a Myriad of systems in place, systems that were ingrained in her with lessons forty-three through forty-eight, and a very simple part of forty-five had been to give a pre-set for each receiver and sender of any correspondence you send. 

 

Venom Bite would be the first to admit that she snatched up the letter a little… too quickly. 

 

However, she was also not expecting to receive a letter from Illuminarrow so soon. 

 

The maw snapped in irritation, whatever Venom bite was feeling seeping into their ever-present anger and hunger. Nails tapped uneasily against the metal table, the noise not registering as venom bite scanned the monitors for any sudden hero appearances. Finding nothing, and finding nothing again on her third check, she grabbed the letter opener and tore open the envelope. 

 

Uncertainty seeping into the nature of the note, all emotion was soon washed from her face and posture.

 

Blinking, she looked over the paper in her hands.

 

And then, a third time.

 

Exhaling slowly, the villain sat down at the table and folded her hands in front of her. 

 

A sip of coffee was taken before she even attempted to try to decipher whatever kind of chicken scratch had been sent to her. Before she could get too far into it, however, a mild snarl echoed through the lab at the same time as a sharp pain attempted to make itself a home in her head.

 

**“H u n g r y.”**

 

_“I get the message.”_ She muttered, Folding up the note and stuffing it into her pocket. There was no pleasing the parasite sometimes. But, judging by the general calmness that the courier had delivered the letter with, there probably wasn’t anything seriously wrong. 

 

…

 

Probably.

 

And, speaking of- _“Petri, I need you to send this package to Valo. He can get it to the usual drop off point if you want to go back to the Inn.”_ Holding out the package, the maneater nodded in understanding before grinning and burrowing back into the ground.

 

As the panel slid back into place, the villain made her way through the lab and back upstairs, pulling off her lab coat and hanging it on the hallway coat hook. Little time was wasted in pulling on a loose pair of pants and modified hoodie- even with a cup of coffee in her hand. Having been through this exact set of circumstances before, she had long since mastered condensing down how much she needed to do in order to leave, as well as how long it took to do everything before the parasite deemed it necessary to fully take control.

 

That being said, she still needed to hurt up and move.

 

Stepping lightly into one of the many tunnels that ran beneath the city, it was hard not to break into a run as the Parasite made its wants known further. Exhaling slowly as she finally reached the desired lift to go above ground, she quickly pressed the required button sequence and ascended into a small room.

 

A growl of irritation as the elevator took them up. 

 

Relaying another series of codes, there was a satisfying * _clunk_ * as the final lock turned and she stepped out into the storeroom of one of the Butcher Marts in the city. 

 

Moving to where most of the display meats were located, as well as a couple of whole pig carcasses, She carefully took off her hoodie and folded it, setting the clothing off to the side. The Parasite was more than happy at this development, fangs glistening in the low light as Venom Bite let go completely and allowed them to raid the store. There were never any workers here at this time of night anyway, she reasoned. 

 

And if there had been, there wouldn't be in a few minutes. 

 

Muscle and viscera were ripped apart, the parasite reveling in their control of the body. It wasn't even something they desired often anymore- A means to an end, the end being whatever happened to be nearby that they could feast on. 

 

There was a time once where the parasite _did_  constantly fight with Venom Bite, but they had come quite far if they thought about it.

 

However, there wasn't really a need to think too much as they ripped through another carcass, blood staining the tile floor. Opening and unhinging the maw that made up nearly the entirety of Venom Bite’s abdomen, a sickening crunch could be heard as dripping teeth crushed through bone like hard candy.

 

The maw didn’t really need the limbs or eyes of their host when they took control. They were just extra pointless extremities that only sometimes helped to move around. However, as a shadow shifted outside the shop, the Maw couldn’t help but consider the possibility of using actual sight to locate their prey. How long had that person outside been standing there in fear, it wondered.

 

Both parties were still for but a moment before the parasite rushed their shared body forward, breaking through the glass and pinning their prey down. Nails dug into the unfortunate watcher's shoulders, the maw opening wide before freezing, letting the scent of their prey finally hit them. 

 

“ **Gingersnap**.” Their voice sounded terribly rough, more so than usual as their bloodlust slowly faded. 

 

With a low growl at the painfully strong scent of fear rolling off of the woman pinned beneath them, the parasite moved off of them, snapping their maw closed as Illumanarrow scrambled to get up.. Venom Bite would not be happy about this. 


End file.
